Device for supporting and handling warp beams in cloth mills

ABSTRACT

A device for supporting and handling warp beams in cloth mills, comprising, on a rolling compound, two supports for the two warp beam axle-ends respectively, means for rotatably engaging said axle-ends into said supports and means for lowering and raising said supports according to the requirements of each yarn processing station.

United States Patent lnventors Jean Camille Jules Agache;

Leon Emile Schricke, La Chapelle DArmentieris, France Feb. 26, 1969 Apr. 13, 1971 Appl. No. Filed Patented Assignee La Richeiche Puteaux, Hauts-de-Seine, France DEVICE FOR SUPPORTING AND HANDLING WARP BEAMS IN CLOTH MILLS 7 Claims, 6 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl 28/41, 2 14/ 390 Int. Cl D03j l/00 Field of Search 214/1 (D),

Anvar Agence Nationale De Valorisation De I [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS I 1,921,233 8/1933 Kachar 214/390 2,706,056 4/1955 Tall 28/41 3,243,193 3/1966 Fulmer et al... 214/390 3,404,794 10/1968 Wilson 214/390 3,486,650 12/1969 Boone 214/390 Primary Examiner-Henry S. Jaudon Att0rneyWaters, Roditi, Schwartz & Nissen ABSTRACT: A device for supporting and handling warp beams in cloth mills, comprising, on a rolling compound, two supports for the two warp beam axle-ends respectively, means for rotatably engaging said axle-ends into said supports and means for lowering and raising said supports according to the requirements of each yarn processing station.

Patented April 13, 1971 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Pa tented April 13, 1971 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 DEVICE FOR SUPPORTING AND HANDLING WARP BEAMS IN CLOTH MILLS SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Before being conveyed to the loom, the yarn is subjected to several successive operations carried out at separate stations in the cloth mill.

At the warping station the yarn sheets are disposed upon a warp beam, a kind of large horizontal roll carried on its two protruding axle-ends. The purpose of the warp beam is to allow the yarn to be wound and unwound at each station and to convey the yarn from one station to the next..

Because of the diversity of the processing apparatus, which furthermore requires that the warp beam unwind at different levels, such beam have heretofore been handled with a variety of appliances such as hoists, guiding rails or channels, rolling carriages, and the like, which support the warp, beam in succession. Further, during transport from the heddles station to the loom or to storage, the harnesses have to be attached to the warp beam in order to retain them thereon.

The present invention relates to a single supporting and handling device capable of supporting the warp beam continuously during all the yarn processing operations and of conveying it between the different processing stations, it being moreover possible to transport the harnesses simply balanced on the warp beam.

The subject device of this invention consists of a rolling compound carrying, with respect to each warp beam axle-end, a support which can be raised or lowered to accommodate the needs of each processing station.

In a preferred form of embodiment, said device consists of two independent elements, each supporting one of the warp beam axle-ends, thereby dispensing with an interconnecting frame between the two elements, such interconnection being provided by the warp beam itself. This results in considerable weight saving, in the obviation of any need for axial adjustment of the warp beam and in the possibility of lowering the same to the floor since each element is completely external to the beam proper.

In accordance with one particularity of the invention, the wheels of the device can be castored to allow the beam to be moved either axially or at right angles to its axis, said wheels preferably including means for locking them in a given position of orientation.

In accordance with another particularity of the invention, the support for, each warp beam axle-end consists of removable jaws which comprise antifriction rollers and means for locking the axle-end.

In one embodiment, the means for adjusting the warp beam axle-ends vertically are connecting rods articulated on the travelling frame through the medium of a horizontal screw which enables the articulated points to-be moved nearer or further away by means of a crank.

Lastly, the supporting means for each warp beam axle-end carry sliding vertical rods of adjustable length which may be caused to rest on the floor in order to relieve the wheels and thereby facilitate their castoring motion.

The subject device of the invention is preferably devised so that its dimensions in plan view do not exceed those of the warp beam in order to permit transport along narrow aisles.

The description which follows with reference to the accompanying nonlimitative exemplary drawings will give a clear understanding of how the invention can be carried into practice.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation view, with the housing partly cut away, of one of the two elements in a specific form of embodiment of the subject device of the present invention, the wheels being orientated forrtransport in a direction parallel to the axis of the warp beam.

FIG. 2 shows in side elevation the element of FIG. I, in conjunction with a left-hand sectional half-view along the line Il-II of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows the two elements supporting a warp beam during transport in a direction parallel to the axis of the latter;

FIG. 4 shows said two elements coupled together during transport under no-load conditions;

FIG. 5 shows the nonloaded element in the waiting position;

FIG. 6 illustrates movement of the warp beam at right angles to its axis to allow it to be offered up to the loom. DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The element shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 includes a rectangular housing I mounted on a pair of wheels 2 and bearing a clamp 3.

Clamp 3 is of double thickness and comprises two bases 4 interconnected by two pins 5 upon which are pivotally mounted two pairs of jaws 6.

The free ends of one of the pairs of jaws are interconnected by a pin 7 formed with a threaded hole therein into which can be screwed or unscrewed the end of a clamp tightening broach 8, and the free ends of the other pair of jaws are interconnected by a pin 9 formed with a guiding hole therein for broach 8. The free end of said broach is formed with a flatsided stub 10 for receiving a ratchet-type handle thereon.

The pins 5 receive, on either side of the jaws 6 and the bases 4, the ends of two links II respectively, followed by two ball bearings 12 the outer races of which act as rollers. The inner profiles of the jaws 6 and the bases 4 are substantially circularly arcuate, so that a warp beam axle-end 13 may lodge within the assembly. The rollers 12 protrude slightly in relation to said jaws and bases, in order that the bottom of the axle-end should bear only upon these rollers and its top upon the jaws without ever bearing against the bases. The rollers assist unwinding a winding of the yarn sheets, notably on the loom shed.

Tightening the jaws with the broach allows the axle-end to be clamped and enables the harness to be retained and transported in equilibrium on the warp beam after it has passed through the heddles station. Disengagement of the broach from pin 7 allows the clamp to be fully opened and permits withdrawal of the device'once the beam has been set down, notably on the loom.

The two bases are furthermore traversed in their middle by a support 14 to one end of which is hingedly connected a pulling hook l5 and to the other a coupling hook 16 formed with a lateral notch 17.

Each pair of links 11 passes through longitudinal openings 18 in the cover 19 of housing 1 and, inside the latter, is pivotally connected to two journals 20 carried by a square nut 21. The two nuts 21 are engaged respectively over the oppositely threaded ends of a worm 22 which rotates in the sides 23 of housing I, and the journals 20 are formed with shoulders which bear against four slideways 24 of square section fixed to the housing, parallel to the worm, whereby to guide nuts 21. At one end, the worm protrudes from the housing and is formed with a square stub 25 for receiving the ratchet handle, and the cover 19 is fitted with two grips 26.

Rotation of stub 25 causes the nuts 21 to move towards or away from each other, hencecausing the clamp 3 to rise or descend. This operation allows the clamp to be adjusted to the level of the warp beam axle-end at any given station, and also enables the beam to be raised and disengaged from certain stations or to be set down thereat.

The symmetry of these motions is ensured by means of two rods 27 which are screwed at one end into support 14, on either side of bases 4, and which pass through the housing 1 on either side of worm 22. These rods 27 serve also as props with their free ends resting on the floor. They are locked with screws 27a after the clamp 3 has been lowered to the maximum, as shown in FIG. 5, thereby allowing the element to remain balanced when it is not under load. This stabilization is necessary because the wheels 2 are mounted on housing 1 through the agency of clevises 28 with their axles offset in relation to the housing centerline when the wheels are directed at right angles to the clamp, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 5.

At their lower ends the rods 27 carry a common skid 44 provided at the base of two tubes 45 adapted respectively to slide on the ends of rods 27.

Like the tubes 45, the rods 27 are formed with a series of holes 46, 47 through which is engageable a broach 48.

When it is desired to bring the skid 44 to rest on the floor, an initial approximate adjustment of the position of the skid very close to floor level can be made, after which the skid is brought into contact with the floor by slightly altering the height of the jaws 6 supporting the warp beam axle-end, this being accomplished by rotating the stub of worm 22.

The wheels 2 are carried in roller bearings and are castored, their clevises being dependent from base plates with interposed ball bearings 29, thereby allowing the wheels to be fully castored and notably to be orientated into the plane of clamp 3, as shown in FIG. 6. The baseplates are themselves secured to the housing with vibration damping rubber pads 31 interposed therebetween.

The wheels are kept perpendicular to the clamp by means of a rod 32 which engages into matching profiles 33 formed at the rear of the clevises 28 and which is retained therein by two tension springs 34 which connect it to two folded leather strips 35 fixed to the opposite side of the housing.

As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 6, a warp beam 36 is secured on two elements 37a and 37b of the kind hereinbefore described by tightening their clamps 3 about the tips 13a and 13b of the beam axle-ends. Said tips bear on the rollers 12, the latter being duplicated in order to prevent the tilting of the elements which would occur with only one pair. The pulling hook 15 comprises two clevises, one being horizontal and articulated about a vertical axis on support 14 and the other being vertical and articulated about a horizontal axis together with a pulling handle 38 through the intermediary of a hook 39. As shown in FIG. 3, the overall width of each device is less than the width of the protruding tip of the beam axle-end. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 1, the length of housing 1 is less than the diameter of the warp beam plates 36a.

With the wheels of element 37a locked in the position referred to precedingly by means of their rods 32 and those of element 37b left loose, and with am 38 fixedto element 37b coaxially with the warp beam, the latter can be shifted parallel to its axis in the direction extending from element 37a to element 37b, as shown in FIG. 3. If the wheels are allowed to rotate through 90 by disengaging rods 32 by means of springs 34 so as to move them into their resting positions in the grooves 40 on base plates 31, and if two handles 38 are fixed to the two elements, parallel to the clamps, it is possible to shift the beam perpendicularly to its axis, as shown in FIG. 6. The handles 38 are angled so as not to touch the rollers 12 in this position. FIG. 6 also'shows that the height of the base beneath the housing is greater than that of the looms headstock 41.

We claim:

1. A device for supporting and handling a warp beam, said device comprising two separate cooperating rolling frames for supporting a warp beam, a warp beam axle-end support on each of said frames, said support including an articulated symmetrical trapeze in a plane perpendicular to the axle of the warp beam, said trapeze including an upper base for supporting the axle-end, a lower base and means interconnecting said upper base to said lower base, said lower base being of a variable length, two slides and a wormed axle on which are mounted said two slides for controlling the variable length of the lower base, means for rotating said wormed axle for moving said slides and adjusting the height of said support above the floor, and means for freely supporting each of said axle-ends rotatably on its respective support.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1, in which the means for freely supporting each axle-end on its respective support include two rollers supported by the ends of the upper base of the said articulated trapeze.

3. A device as claimed in claim 2 comprising on each rolling frame two jaws pivotally mounted on the axes of the rollers for gripping the corresponding axle-end of the warp beam, and means for putting said jaws into or out of operation.

4. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said wormed axle is disposed transversely of the direction of movement of said A device as claimed in claim 4 wherein said two slldes are threadedly associated with said wormed axle.

6. A device as claimed in claim 5 wherein said two slides are associated with said wormed axle for movement in mutual opposition to one another.

7. A device as claimed in claim 6 wherein said means interconnecting said upper base to said lower base include respective links connected to each of said slides and to said upper base. 

2. A device as claimed in claim 1, in which the means for freely supporting each axle-end on its respective support include two rollers supported by the ends of the upper base of the said articulated trapeze.
 3. A device as claimed in claim 2 comprising on each rolling frame two jaws pivotally mounted on the axes of the rollers for gripping the corresponding axle-end of the warp beam, and means for putting said jaws into or out of operation.
 4. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said wormed axle is disposed transversely of the direction of movement of said support.
 5. A device as claimed in claim 4 wherein said two slides are threadedly associated with said wormed axle.
 6. A device as claimed in claim 5 wherein said two slides are associated with said wormed axle for movement in mutual opposition to one another.
 7. A device as claimed in claim 6 wherein said means interconnecting said upper base to said lower base include respective links connected to each of said slides and to said upper base. 